Pessary



lJ'NO. R. ROWAND, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

rEssaRY.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 5,877', dated October 24, 1848.

To all whom t may concern l Be it known that I, JOHN It. ROWAND,l

doctor of medicine, of the city and county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful- Improvement on Pessaries or Womb-Supporters; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings,

making a part of this specification, in

which- Figure l, represents an anterior view, letter a (same figure) the cup-portion, letter Z),

the flap-portion, letter c the perforation. Fig. 2, represents a lateral view, letters a, a, (same ligure) the cup letters b, b, the edge of the flap. Fig. 3, represents a perpendicular view into the bowl of the cup-portion, at the bottom of which is seen the perforation, represented by letters' c, c, and throughA this the presenting edge of the corresponding portion of the perforation in the ap b, b,letters d, d, the rounded edge of the margin of the cup. Fig. 4t, represents a direct view of the bottom of the cup, and

its perforation, and these traversed by the flap the thin edge only of which is seen.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.. v

I construct the upper or cup-portion of the pessary either in a circular or an oval form; the latter I prefer, and it is that from which the drawings have been made, in which the longitudinal diameter is about two inches from the outer edges and the transverse diameter about one and a half inches; in depth about half an inch; in thickness about two lines around the edge, which is carefully rounded off; gradually diminishing in thickness to about a line toward the bottom of the cup. 4But in order to obviate the tendency of pessaries in gen-- eral to slip from the position in which they are placed as supporters of the womb, I have -added a flap or flattened tapering elongation which extends continuously from the under surface of the cup, about three inchesv in length along each of its outer edges, about two lines in thickness where it joins the bottom `of the cup-, gradually diminishing in width from its junction with the cup to a more or less rounded point or apex,-and in thickness, diminishing to about one 'line at the apex: the form being oval ythe above dimensions obtain, Iv would observe however that if the cup were circular the diameter would be an intermediate one.

This pessary may be lmade of any appropriate substance.

When the pessary is duly introduced and properly placed in cases requiring its aid, it has been proved by adequate experience to be effectual for the end proposed.

The advantages of the flap over the round stem are that the flap lays gently between the anterior and posterior-walls of the vaginal canal which are in Vcontact owing to the pressure of the bladder in front and the rectum behind. There is n0 tendency in f the parts to extrude the instrument which would be the case were the stem thickor bulky. On the contrary it seems to methat the collapsing of the anterior and osterior parietesf'of thevagina operates y their pressure on the flap to retain the instrument firmly in its place, and prevents the tilting of the cup by preserving its horizontal position, a tendency existing in the ordinary pessaries to slip away by the front edge coming down rst as observed to me by a patient,-hence the hint which led me to adopt the stay or flap.

I desire it to be understood that this pessary is a self-sustaining supporter, that is, in contradistinction t-o any form of the instrument that contemplates connection with or flap, descending from the bottom of the v cup of the pessary, intended to occupy the uterine half (or more) of the vaginal canal, thereby more effectively to preserve the uterus (which reposes by its mouth or lips upon the cup) in situ; and also, for such a combination of the iiap7 cup and perforation as are 'incidental to the above described flappessary; using any appropriate substance for the construction of the instrument.

JOI-IN R. ROWAND.

Witnesses: JOHN L. SMITH JAS. ENNIs. 

